Snowboarding

Olympic Qualifiers Continue at Sprint U.S. Grand Prix at Copper

by
USSA
2013-12-17 08:48
 

COPPER MOUNTAIN, CO (Dec. 17) – Top snowboarding athletes from the USA continue their push for spots on the Olympic team at the second of five Olympic qualification events, the Sprint U.S. Grand Prix Halfpipe Series and the Paul Mitchell Snowboard Slopestyle series at the Sprint U.S. Snowboarding Grand Prix at Copper Mountain Dec. 21-22. The athletes will compete in the FIS World Cup event with a field of international athletes while also continuing the hunt for spots on the U.S. Olympic halfpipe snowboarding team and the first-ever Olympic slopestyle snowboarding team. Coverage of the Sprint U.S. Snowboarding Grand Prix will air on NBC and NBCSN. See below for a complete competition and TV schedule.

HIGHLIGHTS

  • Top snowboarding athletes from the USA continue their push for spots on the Olympic team at the second of five Olympic qualification events, the Sprint U.S. Grand Prix Halfpipe Series and the Paul Mitchell Snowboard Slopestyle series at the Sprint U.S. Snowboarding Grand Prix at Copper Mountain Dec. 21-22.
  • For the sixth-straight year Copper Mountain welcomes the Sprint U.S. Grand Prix, and in its 18th year, the Sprint U.S. Grand Prix is the longest running domestic tour.
  • The event doubles as a FIS World Cup event and the athletes will compete with a field of international athletes while also continuing the hunt for spots on the U.S. Olympic halfpipe snowboarding team and the first-ever Olympic slopestyle snowboarding team. In addition to team qualification criteria, athletes must earn World Cup points to become Olympic eligible.
  • Selection to the Olympic snowboarding team will be made from athletes who have a top-four finish against the entire field in the selection events. Those athletes will be ranked with their best two of five qualifying events using World Cup scoring (1,000 point scale) comparing only USA athletes.
  • The depth of talent and level of competition for the qualification series was evident last weekend at the Dew Tour iON Mountain Championships at Breckenridge, the first Olympic qualifier, where rookies like Ben Ferguson (Bend, OR) and Taylor Gold (Steamboat Springs, CO) went head-to-head with veteran athletes like Scotty Lago (Seabrook, NH) and Louie Vito (Sandy, UT).
  • Coverage of the Sprint U.S. Snowboarding Grand Prix will air on NBC and NBCSN. See below for a complete competition and TV schedule.

HALFPIPE HIGHLIGHTS

  • Greg Bretz (Mammoth Lakes, CA), Shaun White (Carlsbad, CA), Taylor Gold and Louie Vito secured top-four results with their U.S. sweep at Dew Tour and will be gunning for more qualification points in the Sprint U.S. Snowboarding Grand Prix Halfpipe Dec. 21.
  • Kelly Clark (West Dover, VT) and Arielle Gold (Steamboat Springs, CO) have both secured a top-four finish and are leading the American women going into this weekend’s second qualification event.
  • Other U.S. halfpipe snowboarding athletes are still in the hunt with four more competitions to earn a top-four finish and score the necessary points to boost their qualification standings.

SLOPESTYLE HIGHLIGHTS

  • Chas Guldemond (Reno, NV) and Sage Kotsenburg (Park City, UT) lead the U.S. men in Olympic qualifier points after topping the U.S. competition, finishing fifth and sixth at Dew Tour. However, all U.S. slopestyle men still need a top-four result (over the entire field) going into the Paul Mitchell Snowboard Slopestyle at the Sprint U.S. Grand Prix.
  • Shaun White qualified first for last week’s Dew Tour slopestyle final, but sat out the competition due to a re-injured ankle. He still needs a top-30 World Cup finish in slopestyle in order to compete at the Sochi Olympic Winter Games. This week's Paul Mitchell Slopestyle at the Sprint U.S. Grand Prix is his best chance to earn the points, as the next and last FIS World Cup in Stoneham, Quebec overlaps with the final two stops of the Sprint U.S. Grand Prix series. White is the only U.S. athlete competing in both slopestyle and halfpipe.
  • Jamie Anderson (S. Lake Tahoe, CA) leads the U.S. women in the qualifier standings after winning at Dew Tour, while Jordie Karlinski (Snowmass Village, CO), Jessika Jenson (Rigby, ID) and Ty Walker (Stowe, VT) still need a top-four finish to be considered.
  • Other U.S. slopestyle athletes are still in the hunt with four more competitions to earn a top-four finish and score the necessary points to boost their qualification standings.

SPRINT U.S. SNOWBOARDING GRAND PRIX SCHEDULE
Wed. Dec. 18 – Men’s halfpipe snowboarding qualifiers, 9:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. MST
Wed. Dec. 18 – Women’s halfpipe snowboarding qualifiers, 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. MST
Thurs. Dec. 19 – Men’s slopestyle snowboarding qualifiers, 8:30 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. MST
Fri. Dec. 20 – Women’s slopestyle snowboarding qualifiers, 11:30 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. MST
Sat. Dec. 21 – Men’s and women’s halfpipe snowboarding finals, 7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. MST
Sun. Dec. 22 – Men’s and women’s slopestyle snowboarding finals, 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. MST

Click here for full Sprint U.S. Grand Prix

*The sponsor village will be open Fri. Dec. 20 – Sun. Dec. 22.

BROADCAST SCHEDULE
Sun. Dec. 22 3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. EST – Halfpipe snowboarding finals, NBC
Fri. Dec. 27 10:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m. EST – Slopestyle snowboarding finals, NBCSN

SPRINT U.S. GRAND PRIX LINKS
Website: CopperColorado.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/CopperMtn
Twitter: @CopperMtn
Hashtag: #CopperGP

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